EXCLUSIVE: Netflix has greenlighted Shadow and Bone, an eight-episode series based on Leigh Bardugo’s bestselling Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows Grishaverse fantasy novels, from Eric Heisserer, writer of Netflix’s smash hit feature Bird Box, and Shawn Levy, executive producer of the Internet network’s mega hit series Stranger Things. The project falls under the Netflix overall deal for Levy’s 21 Laps. Bardugo also serves as an executive producer on the show, produced by Netflix.

Macmillan

Created, written and executive produced by Heisserer, who also will showrun, Shadow and Bone brings together the stories and characters of both Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows, two overlapping series that take place in Bardugo’s Grishaverse. In a world cleaved in two by a massive barrier of perpetual darkness, where unnatural creatures feast on human flesh, a young soldier uncovers a power that might finally unite her country. But as she struggles to hone her power, dangerous forces plot against her. Thugs, thieves, assassins and saints are at war now, and it will take more than magic to survive.

Pouya Shahbazian (the Divergent series) also serves as an executive producer alongside Bardugo as well as Shawn Levy, Dan Levine, Dan Cohen and Josh Barry for 21 Laps.

The series reunites Heisserer with 21 Laps Entertainment. The company produced the 2016 sci-fi feature Arrival, which Heisserer wrote, also as a book adaptation, earning an Oscar nomination.

Netflix

With over 2.5 million copies sold in the English language alone, Bardugo’s Grishaverse books have been translated into 38 languages around the world to date. A new installment of the Grishaverse, King of Scars, comes out later this month.

Heisserer wrote the screenplay for Netflix’s postapocalyptic thriller Bird Box, based on a novel, which has set new Netflix viewing records, becoming an instant pop culture phenom. He co-wrote the screenplay for Sony’s Bloodshot, the Vin Diesel starrer based on the comic book series, which is due out in 2020. He also has Simultaneous, a series based on his short story, in early development at Hulu. Heisserer is repped by WME, Art/Work Entertainment, and Jackoway Austen.

21 Laps recently wrapped production on Stranger Things 3. The company, with Fox 2000, also recently acquired feature rights to Mothers, Lock Up Your Daughters Because They Are Terrifying, an elevated horror short story written by Alice Sola Kim, in a bidding battle among multiple studios. 21 Laps is producing. They recently teamed with Greg Berlanti to adapt the hit New York musical Be More Chill. Upcoming projects include Fox’s Free Guy, with Levy directing and Ryan Reynolds starring, Monster Problems starring Dylan O’Brien at Paramount Players, and Sesame Street at Warner Brothers.